CITY FIRE PREVENTION CODE UPDATED JAN 15, 2015
The Oberlin Fire Prevention Code has been amended to include the new 2015 International Fire Code and the 2011 Ohio Fire Code. Interested parties may access the new IFC codes either by web link (in right column) or by printed code book available at Fire Station, City Building Department, or Oberlin Public Library.

FIREFIGHTER OF YEAR - 2014Oberlin firefighters held their annual holiday and awards party on December 8, naming Firefighter/paramedic Jon Secue as the 2014 Oberlin Firefighter of the Year. Jon was selected for the award for his enthusiasm, devotion and teamwork. Congratulations, Jon. See FFY

ARE YOUR PREPARED FOR AN EMERGENCY OR DISASTER?
September was National Preparedness Month (NPM) month. The month is past - but is your family prepared to: “Be Disaster Aware, Take Action to Prepare.”
For details about National Preparedness, visit: www.ready.gov/september #NatlPrep

FIRE CODE AND PERMIT FEES REVISEDFees for fire code operational and construction review have been revised (04/08/2014). Under this revised program, fees (based on the size of an occupancy or structure) will be charged for all inspections performed by the Fire Department. View new fee schedule and requirements at Permits.

SELF- INSPECTION PROGRAM IMPLEMENTEDIn conjunction with the revised fire inspection program, the Fire Department has implemented a Self-Inspection program for eligible property owners and primary leasees. Learn more about this program at Self-inspections

CITY USES CODE RED NOTIFICATION SYSTEMThe City of Oberlin uses a community notification system called Code RED. This system allows individual residents and business owners to add cell phones, email, and texting to their preferred method of receiving messages from the City. Read more about CodeRED under our Quick Links listing.

OFD GETS NEW BREATHING APPARATUSUnder a 2013 Assistance to Firefighters grant, Oberlin Fire has taken delivery of new state-of-the-art (2015 standard) self-contained breathing apparatus. This equipment is worn by firefighters to protect them when working in fire, rescue and other hazardous environments, and provides full protection from chemical/biological exposures. Ninety-five percent of replacement cost was paid by FEMA.

SMOKE ALARMS - Install, Inspect, DetectOctober is Fire Prevention Month. Smoke alarms are a very important means of preventing home fire fatalities by providing an early warning signal so you and your family can escape. According to the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA), an estimated 385,500 fires occur in residential buildings every year resulting in 3,500 civilian deaths and 13,250 injuries. When a smoke alarm sounds, it is time for you to spring into action.

You can prevent tragedy simply by testing and maintaining your smoke alarms and practicing a fire escape plan. Make sure your home fire escape plan is up to date and everyone in the home knows what to do when the smoke alarm sounds. Practice your plan often. Free smoke detectors are available at the fire station.

OUR FIRE STATION IS GOLDEN The Oberlin fire station has received the Leadership for Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification for our renovation/expansion, completed in April 2011. View our green building project at Expansion/ renovation of the Fire Station.

INTERESTED IN FIRE SAFETY EDUCATION?The department has two important tools available for public education opportunities - Sparky the Fire Dog and Sparky's Hazard House. Both were acquired through FEMA Fire grant funds.Sparky is a fully animated Dalmatian dog in a fire truck complete with red lights and siren. He moves, speaks, listens, winks, blinks, and even plays music. Sparky will be used in fire prevention activities including school tours, pre-school visits, fire station visits, parades, and Fire Prevention Week. The Hazard House is an excellent opportunity to learn about home fire safety. Contact us to discuss how one of these programs can be schedule for your group or community activity.

C.E.R.T. TRAINING
The Lorain County Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security maintains a Citizens Emergency Response Team (CERT) program. In the event of a disaster, trained citizens can react as teams and provide basic care that will help limit further injury to disaster victims and will lessen the possibility of further damage to property.See CERT or contact the Lorain County Office of Emergency Management at (440) 329-5117 for information.

Want to Know How to Become an Oberlin Firefighter?Click HERE for all of the information you'll need about the jobrequirements and recruitment of firefighter candidates!

The City of Oberlin keeps residents and businesses informed of emergencies and other time-sensitive information through CodeRED, a high-speed emergency notification solution provided by Emergency Communications Network. The city uses CodeRED to quickly and effectively keep the community informed of time sensitive information that may impact the entire city, or specific neighborhoods. To see how the CodeRED system works, click here

The City will use the CodeRED system to keep you informed of emergency information that may impact your safety by sending you telephone calls, text messages and emails. Messages may regard evacuations, police activity, missing children, boil water notices or other information that you are asked to take immediate action or precautions for.

Please note: If you are unsure of whether your contact information is in the emergency database, or you have recently moved or changed your telephone number, it is important to visit the enrollment page above to add or update your information. Do not assume you are automatically enrolled to receive notifications.

On Jan 27, 2011, the Department of Homeland Security began replacement of the color-coded alert system with a new National Terrorism Advisory System. Future alerts will simply be published as they occur. Sign up for email or Twitter alerts at: DHS NTAS
Homeland Security System:
Disaster PreparednessClick HERE to get some useful information for keeping your family safe... and prepared for any type of emergency - natural or manmade.

There are five Threat Conditions, each identified by a description and corresponding color. The higher the Threat Condition, the greater the risk of a terrorist attack. Risk includes both the probability of an attack occurring and its potential gravity.